Are you a hack?
So you're a hack
Hacky jokes are jokes or premises that are unoriginal, easy, pandering, or lazy.
My advice for new comedians, which it turns out is quite controversial:
Are you a hack? Don’t worry about it. Don't make yourself a wreck stressing about being original when you’re brand new. Just get that stage time in. Learn to stand up there. Practice your timing. Get good at talking into the mic. Grow less afraid. Originality is important but there's other stuff to work on too and the thing when you're first starting is getting that stage time in.
Its not like its easy to make people laugh with hacky bits. Learn to do that, and you’re halfway there. If you can make them laugh at all, great. NOW you can get pickier about what you make them laugh with.
I honestly wish there were places to go tell other comedians' jokes, with credit of course. I wish you could "cover" other comics, the way there are cover bands for musicians. I think it would be such a good way for new comics to grow and develop their comedy muscles. Just to be clear, I know this isn't a thing, and I'm not advising comics to cover other comic's jokes. Please note I said "I wish there were..." not, "Hey, do this..." lest you get a bad name in your comedy community. We did do a “Dead Comedian’s Special” one year for Halloween, where all the comics dressed up as their favorite deceased comic and told that comics jokes, and a few were ambitious enough to write original material in the style of their dead heroes.
I mentioned this opinion turned out to be rather controversial. I’ve had a few veteran comics jump down my throat for giving this advice, suggesting that I’m sending comics out to burn out the audience. I don’t think this is a fair take. I’m talking about beginners doing open mics. The fact is, most of us start out pretty hacky anyway, and the audience at an open mic knows they’ll be getting a mixed bag. I’m not saying “be hacky” I’m saying, don’t worry too much about it, at first. Again, a beginner is probably going to be hacky either way. I don’t see why they should have to be tortured over it.
What I worry about is some aspiring young comedian not getting through that awkward phase that most really good comedians had to go through at some point because they’re worried about being anything less than genius. If you’re getting up, just be proud of yourself for getting up at all and keep doing it.
Feel free to agree or disagree in the comments.
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I'm exactly here with trying to tell my story aloud. Its obvious that I'm very far from what I can picture in my head, and I will continue to strive for it, but I'll never get there if I don't accept where I'm at right now, which is I might just be able to tell a conventional, linear, vanilla story. (I guess I can't hop over this part.) Great advice, especially for my brethren, the underachieving perfectionists who need some encouragement/permission to subvert their internal critic.
I wish there were open mics for us beginning golfers. When I started they told me the same thing... Get out there, hold the club, know the grip, swing the swing, get the feel and don't be afraid to be an embarrassing hack in font of experienced hackless golfers. But the thing is, I was so bad that everybody laughed which was actually pretty cool.